Pleated paper towel stack and method

ABSTRACT

A continuous length of pleated paper towel having a leading end and a trailing end. The continuous length of pleated paper towel including a connection at one of the leading end and trailing end that attaches to another continuous length of pleated paper towel to permit uninterrupted dispensing operation of paper towel.

FIELD OF THE TECHNOLOGY

The present disclosure relates generally to paper toweling, and various methods associated with the supply and replenishment of paper toweling. More particularly, this disclosure relates to pleated paper toweling, and various methods associated with pleated paper toweling.

BACKGROUND

A variety of paper towel dispensing arrangements currently exists. One common arrangement includes a paper towel dispenser having pre-folded, interleaved paper towels or sheets that are pulled from an opening in the dispenser. The paper towels are interleaved so that a tab of a second following paper towel is delivered when a first paper towel is pulled from the dispenser. This type of paper towel dispenser is typically recessed into a wall structure, such as a restroom wall in the vicinity of a restroom sink.

There are a number of disadvantages to the interleaved paper towel dispensers. One disadvantage is that pre-folded paper towels are relatively expensive, because the towels must be pre-cut to the desired length and interleaved (i.e., interwoven or overlapped), each of which adds to manufacturing costs. Another disadvantage is that these dispensers sometimes dispense more than one sheet of pre-folded paper towel at a time, whether the user intended to take more than one sheet or not. The extra paper towels are often discarded without use, or left on the restroom sink, for example, where the extra towels become wet and possibly contaminated.

Improvements related to paper toweling is needed generally to reduce paper towel waste and further simplify maintenance of paper towel dispensers.

SUMMARY

One aspect of the present invention relates to a continuous length of pleated paper towel. The pleated paper towel has a leading end and a trailing end. The pleated paper towel is designed to stack upon another pleated paper towel such that the trailing end of one towel stack attaches or bonds to the leading end of the other towel stack. Another aspect of the present invention relates to a method of supplying or replenishing a paper towel dispenser. The method includes stacking a continuous length of pleated paper towel upon an existing length of paper towel wherein the trailing end of the existing length of paper towel and the leading end of the continuous length of pleated paper towel dispenses without interruption.

A variety of examples of desirable product features or methods are set forth in part in the description that follows, and in part will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by practicing various aspects of the disclosure. The aspects of the disclosure may relate to individual features as well as combinations of features, including combinations of features disclosed in separate embodiments. It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are explanatory only, and are not restrictive of the claimed invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of one embodiment of a continuous length of pleated paper towel, in accordance with the principles disclosed;

FIG. 2 is a side perspective view of the continuous length of pleated paper towel of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front perspective view of the continuous length of pleated paper towel of FIG. 1, illustrating an alternative bonding material location;

FIG. 4 is a front perspective view of a dispenser illustrating the provision of a stacked arrangement of two continuous lengths of pleated paper towel, in accordance with the principles disclosed;

FIG. 5 is a side perspective view of another embodiment of a continuous length of pleated paper towel, in accordance with the principles disclosed; and

FIG. 6 is a front perspective view of the continuous length of pleated paper towel of FIG. 1, illustrating with another alternative bonding material arrangement.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will now be made in detail to exemplary aspects of the present disclosure that are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.

The present disclosure relates to a continuous length of pleated paper towel for use in a towel dispenser. The towel dispenser can be located within a recessed space in a wall or mounted flush to a wall. One towel dispenser, for example, includes a cabinet recessed within a wall having a dispenser assembly that dispenses a continuous length of pleated paper towel. Details of a dispenser assembly that dispenses a continuous length of pleated paper towel are provided in U.S. application Ser. No. ______ [having Attorney Docket No. 7542.313US01, entitled TOWEL DISPENSER]; which application is incorporated herein by reference.

As previously described, conventional pre-cut paper towel dispensers often dispense more individual towels than what is needed by a single user, resulting in towel waste and/or mess. The extra dispensed towels are sometimes left out in the open, for example upon a sink ledge, where the extra towels can become wet and/or contaminated. The present continuous length of pleated paper towel eliminates the unintended dispensing of paper toweling associated with individual pre-cut paper towels. The present continuous length of pleated paper towel is also designed to provide a convenient way of supplying or replenishing the paper toweling of a pleated paper towel dispenser.

Referring now to FIG. 1, one embodiment of a continuous length of pleated paper towel 10 is illustrated. What is meant by “continuous length” of pleated paper towel is that the paper towel is in the form of a paper web, as opposed to individual pre-cut sheets of paper towels. In one embodiment, the continuous length of pleated paper towel 10 has a length of between about 50 feet and 250 feet.

What is meant by continuous length of “pleated” paper toweling is that the length includes a plurality of fold lines 12 (FIG. 2), in contrast to a roll, for example. In the illustrated embodiment, the fold lines 12 are alternating and define a zig-zag folding pattern. The continuous length of pleated paper towel 10 accordingly has a rectangular stacked shape. Additionally, the continuous length of pleated paper towel is non-perforated (i.e., the web has no spaced separation lines). The continuous length of pleated paper towel 10 generally defines a paper towel stack having a stack height H (FIG. 1), a stack width W, and a stack depth D. In one embodiment, the stack height H is about 5.0 inches to 6.0 inches; the stack width W is about 7.5 inches to 8.5 inches, and the stack depth D is about 3.0 inches to 3.75 inches.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 3, the continuous length of pleated paper towel 10 has a first top end 14 and a second bottom end 16 (FIG. 3). In use in the dispenser assembly described in U.S. application Ser. No. ______ [having Attorney Docket No. 7542.313US01, entitled TOWEL DISPENSER], which application is previously incorporated herein by reference, the first top end 14 is a trailing end and the second bottom end 16 is a leading end. That is, the continuous length of pleated paper towel 10 dispenses from the bottom of the paper towel stack such that the leading end 16 is the first portion of the length of pleated paper towel to be dispensed and the trailing end 14 is the last portion of the length of pleated paper towel to be dispensed.

A bonding agent or bonding material 18 is provided at one of the leading end 16 and the trailing end 14 of the continuous length of pleated paper towel 10. In the illustrated embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2, the bonding material 18 is provided on the trailing end 14 of the continuous length of pleated paper towel 10. In the alternative, the bonding material 18 can be provided on the leading end 16 of the continuous length of pleated paper towel (see dashed line representation in FIG. 3). In still another alternative, the bonding material 18 can be provided on both the trailing end 14 and leading end 16 of the continuous length of pleated paper towel 10 (see FIG. 6).

In one embodiment, the bonding material 18 is an adhesive material. Referring to FIG. 1, the adhesive material can be provided in the form of an adhesive strip 20. In the illustrated embodiment, the adhesive strip 20 extends generally parallel to an edge 22 of the trailing end 14 of the paper towel 10. The adhesive strip 20 can include, for example, a strip or length of double-sided tape. In the alternative, the adhesive strip can be a chemical strip of material applied directly to the paper towel 10 as opposed to being applied to a separate strip that is attached to the paper towel. A non-adhesive removable layer 24 covers the adhesive strip 20.

Referring now to FIG. 4, one dispenser embodiment 30 is illustrated with a first continuous length of pleated paper towel 10 a positioned within an interior 32 of the dispenser 30. For purposes of illustrating a method of replenishing the dispenser 30, the first continuous length of pleated paper towel will be described as an existing length of pleated paper towel 10 a.

The method of replenishing the dispenser 30 generally includes providing a stacked pleated paper towel arrangement 40 including the first continuous length of pleated paper towel 10 a (e.g., the existing length of pleated paper towel) and a second continuous length of pleated paper towel 10 b (represented in dashed line).

Providing the stacked pleated paper towel arrangement includes exposing the bonding material 18 on the trailing end 14 a of the existing length of pleated paper towel 10 a. The bonding material 18 of the pleated paper towel 10 a in FIG. 4 is exposed by removing the non-adhesive layer 24 (FIG. 1) from the adhesive strip 20. In the illustrated embodiment, the layer 24 and the adhesive strip 20 are provided on an exterior surface 26 of the existing length of pleated paper towel for easy access to the layer 24 and the strip 20.

With the adhesive strip 20 exposed, the second continuous length of pleated paper towel 10 b is placed upon or stacked on the existing length of pleated paper towel 10 a. The trailing end 14 a of the existing pleated paper towel 10 a bonds with the leading end 16 b of the second continuous length of pleated paper towel 10 b. The bonding material 18 attaches the trailing end 14 a of the existing pleated paper towel 10 a to the leading end 16 b of the second continuous length of pleated paper towel 10 b such that the lengths of pleated paper towel 10 a, 10 b are inseparably joined or connected.

To inseparably join or connect the lengths of pleated paper towel 10 a, 10 b, in an alternative method, the bonding material can be applied to the trailing end 14 a of the existing length of pleated paper towel 10 a at the time of replenishment. In yet other alternative embodiments, the bonding material provided can be of a type that is activated by application of force, or can be of a type that uses water, for example, to effect bonding characteristics.

The bond between the two ends 14 a, 16 b, of the lengths of pleated paper towel 10 a, 10 b permits the dispenser 30 to operate such that a dispense cycle of the trailing end 14 a of the existing length of pleated paper towel 10 a and the leading end 16 b of the second continuous length of pleated paper towel 10 b occurs without interruption. That is, when the existing length of pleated paper towel 10 a becomes depleted, the second continuous length of pleated paper towel begins to dispense. A user or technician is not required to initiate the feed of the end of a new continuous length of pleated paper towel, for example, rather dispensing operation of the dispenser continues without interruption.

As can be understood, the dispenser 30 can be loaded or initially supplied with two or more continuous lengths of pleated paper towel in the manner described above. For example, the dispenser can be initially supplied with a first continuous length of pleated paper towel and a second continuous length of pleated paper towel placed there upon. In an embodiment having the bonding material 18 on the trailing end (e.g., 14 a, FIG. 4) of the length of pleated paper towel, the bonding material 18 of the first continuous length of pleated paper towel (e.g., 10 a) is exposed or activated to join the two lengths of paper towel. The bonding material 18 on the trailing end of the second continuous length of pleated paper towel (e.g., 10 b) is not exposed or activated until such time as another continuous length of pleated paper towel is stacked upon the second length of paper towel.

With regards to an embodiment having the bonding material 18 on the leading end 16 of the length of pleated paper towel 10 (e.g., see FIG. 3), when initially supplying a stacked paper towel arrangement, the bonding material 18 of the first continuous length of pleated paper towel is not exposed or activated; rather the bonding material 18 on the leading end of the second continuous length of pleated paper towel is exposed or activated to join the two lengths of paper towel. Replenishing such a stacked paper towel arrangement is similarly provided by exposing the bonding material on the leading end of another continuous length of pleated paper towel.

With regards to an embodiment having the bonding material 18 on both the trailing end 14 and the leading end 16 of the length of pleated paper towel 10 (e.g., see FIG. 6), as can be understood, a stacked paper towel arrangement can be initially provided or replenished by exposing the bonding material 18 on both the trailing end 14 of a first continuous length of pleated paper towel and the leading end 16 of a second continuous length of pleated paper towel. This arrangement provides for two strips or regions of bonding material that secure or join together the two lengths of paper towel.

Additionally and still referring to the two-strip embodiment of FIG. 6, in the event only half of one of a continuous length of pleated paper towel is desired, the stack can be split without waste of one of the stack halves. That is, for example, a first half of the stack can be joined with a first continuous length of pleated paper towel by securing together the trailing end of the first length of pleated paper towel and the leading end of the first half of the stack by way of the two respective bonding material strips. Also, the second half of the stack, now having only a bonding material strip on the trailing end, can later be used by securing together the trailing end of the first length and the leading end of the second half of the stack by way of the bonding material strip on the trailing end of the first continuous length of pleated paper towel.

Referring now to FIG. 5, a second embodiment of a continuous length of pleated paper towel 100 is illustrated. The continuous length of pleated paper towel 100 includes many of the same features as previously described in the first embodiment.

For example, the continuous length of pleated paper towel 100 has a first top trailing end 114 and a second bottom leading end 116. In this second embodiment, however, the continuous length of pleated paper towel 100 includes a labyrinth type fold 44 at one of the ends that joins the ends of two continuous lengths of pleated paper towel.

In one method of use, the leading end (e.g. 116) of a second continuous length of pleated paper towel is inserted into the labyrinth type fold 44 at the trailing end 114 of a first continuous length of pleated paper towel 100. The labyrinth type fold 44 captures the leading end of the second continuous length of pleated paper towel to join or connect together the two lengths of paper towel. Similar to the previous embodiment, the connected lengths of paper towel permit a dispenser to operate such that a dispense cycle of the trailing end 114 of the one length of pleated paper towel and the leading end (e.g., 116) of the another stacked continuous length of pleated paper towel occurs without interruption.

While reference is made with respect to bottom leading ends and top trailing ends, it is to be understood that the particular orientation of the pleated paper towel stack is made only for purposes of describing the particular orientation illustrated. As can be understood, in other applications, the bottom leading end of the continuous length of pleated paper towel can define the top leading end of the continuous length of pleated paper towel, for example, depending upon the orientation of the pleated paper towel stack.

The above specification provides a complete description of the present invention. Since many embodiments of the invention can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, certain aspects of the invention reside in the claims hereinafter appended. 

1. A stacked pleated paper towel arrangement, comprising: a) a first continuous length of pleated paper towel having a first end and a second end; b) a second continuous length of pleated paper towel having a first end and a second end, the second continuous length of pleated paper towel being stacked upon the first continuous length of pleated paper towel; and c) a bonding material that attaches the first end of the first continuous length of pleated paper towel to the second end of the second continuous length of pleated paper towel.
 2. The stacked arrangement of claim 1, wherein the bonding material is an adhesive material.
 3. The stacked arrangement of claim 2, wherein the adhesive material is an adhesive strip.
 4. The stacked arrangement of claim 3, wherein the adhesive strip is covered by a non-adhesive removable layer, the non-adhesive removable layer being removed prior to stacking the second continuous length of pleated paper towel upon the first continuous length of pleated paper towel.
 5. The stacked arrangement of claim 3, wherein the adhesive strip extends generally parallel to an edge of one of the first end of the first continuous length of pleated paper towel and the second end of the second continuous length of pleated paper towel.
 6. The stacked arrangement of claim 1, wherein the bonding material is provided on the second end of the second continuous length of pleated paper towel.
 7. The stacked arrangement of claim 1, wherein the bonding material is provided on the first end of the first continuous length of pleated paper towel.
 8. The stacked arrangement of claim 1, wherein each of the first and second continuous lengths of pleated paper towel has alternating fold lines that define a zig-zag folding pattern.
 9. The stacked arrangement of claim 8, wherein at least the second continuous length of pleated paper towel has a length of between about 50 feet and 250 feet.
 10. The stacked arrangement of claim 8, wherein at least the second continuous length of pleated paper towel has a stack height of about 5.0 inches to 6.0 inches, and a stack width of about 7.5 inches to 8.5 inches.
 11. The stacked arrangement of claim 1, wherein the bonding material attaches the first end of the first continuous length of pleated paper towel to the second end of the second continuous length of pleated paper towel such that the first and second continuous lengths of pleated paper towel are inseparably joined.
 12. A method of replenishing a paper towel dispenser, the paper towel dispenser including an existing length of pleated paper towel, the method comprising the steps of: a) placing a continuous length of pleated paper towel upon the existing length of pleated paper towel; and b) bonding a trailing end of the existing length of pleated paper towel with a leading end of the continuous length of pleated paper towel; c) wherein a dispense cycle of the trailing end of the existing length of pleated paper towel and the leading end of the continuous length of pleated paper towel occurs without interruption.
 13. The method of claim 12, further including exposing a bonding material provided on one of the trailing end of the existing length of pleated paper towel and the leading end of the continuous length of pleated paper towel.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the bonding material is an adhesive material.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the adhesive material is an adhesive strip.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein the step of exposing the bonding material includes removing a non-adhesive layer from the adhesive strip.
 17. The method of claim 15, wherein the adhesive strip extends generally parallel to an edge of one of the trailing end of the existing length of pleated paper towel and the leading end of the continuous length of pleated paper towel.
 18. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of bonding includes utilizing a bonding material provided on the leading end of the continuous length of pleated paper towel.
 19. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of bonding includes utilizing a bonding material provided on the trailing end of the existing length of pleated paper towel.
 20. A pleated paper towel stack, comprising: a) a continuous length of pleated paper towel having a leading end and a trailing end, the continuous length of pleated paper towel having alternating fold lines that define a zig-zag folding pattern; and b) a bonding material provided at one of the leading end and the trailing end.
 21. The stack of claim 20, wherein the bonding material is an adhesive material.
 22. The stack of claim 21, wherein the adhesive material is an adhesive strip.
 23. The stack of claim 22, wherein the adhesive strip is covered by a non-adhesive removable layer.
 24. The stack of claim 22, wherein the adhesive strip extends generally parallel to an edge of the one of the leading end and the trailing end.
 25. The stack of claim 20, wherein the bonding material is provided on the leading end of the continuous length of pleated paper towel.
 26. The stack of claim 20, wherein the bonding material is provided on the trailing end of the continuous length of pleated paper towel.
 27. The stack of claim 20, wherein the continuous length of pleated paper towel has a length of between about 50 feet and 250 feet.
 28. The stack of claim 20, wherein the continuous length of pleated paper towel has a stack height of about 5.0 inches to 6.0 inches, and a stack width of about 7.5 inches to 8.5 inches.
 29. A pleated paper towel stack, comprising: a) a continuous length of pleated paper towel having a leading end and a trailing end, the continuous length of pleated paper towel having alternating fold lines that define a zig-zag folding pattern; and b) a bonding material provided at both of the leading end and the trailing end. 